1. Technical Field
This application relates to a toilet that does not require water for use, which may be used in the home or which may be portable, such as for use in camping. This application further relates to a toilet that uses a bag made of a biodegradable material to catch human waste, which bag may be disposed of after a single use, and a method for disposing of said biodegradable bags.
2. Background Art
Water conservation has become a major environmental issue in the past few decades. Everyday, humans use millions of gallons of water, a good deal of which is flushed down toilets. Human beings are therefore needlessly wasting one of our planet's most precious resources. Water is necessary to sustain all life on the planet, yet we use so much of it to dispose of our own waste.
Further, many countries in this world do not have access to running water. People in these countries are forced to dispose of their waste in the same areas that they must also live. Most of the world's rural population has no piped water supply and must rely upon pit latrines for sewage disposal. Pit latrines are holes in the ground which are sited, usually at some distance, away from a residence. When a latrine's capacity has been reached, it is abandoned and a new pit is dug at another site. Latrines provide no sewage treatment and rely upon soakage into the earth for the dispersal of liquids. As the population generally relies on shallow wells or surface water for drinking purposes, there is the ever-present risk of disease spreading from contaminated water throughout the community.
In addition to the above, there are some instances where running water simply isn't available. For instance, water is typically not available at a campground or a portable toilet, which are set up at various locations, such as at construction sites or public parks. It would therefore be advantageous for all of the above situations to have a toilet that does not require the use of running water, and which is easily and conveniently maintained and is also friendly to the environment.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,058,218, entitled “Waterless toilet,” teaches a waterless toilet that ensures operation with no need for the user to seal a used container, remove it, and insert a new one. The invention is intended to operate automatically by means of appropriate drive mechanisms and components and to provide each user with a ready-to-use and hygienic toilet. It is therefore not meant to be portable.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,887,290, entitled “Waterless toilet system,” teaches a waterless toilet that uses a motor-driven crushing and separating machine designed to cut bags and waste matter into pieces, and separate solid matter from water.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,177,819, entitled “Waterless toilet with containers with lids for waste” also teaches a waterless toilet, but offers no methods of disposal of used waste bags.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,285,719, entitled “Organic material recycling method and device” teaches a method and device for disposing of human waste or other types of refuse. Once disposed of into a tank, the waste is then broken down by several means, including the use of bacteria and worms.